1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a capital having a neck that facilitates the positioning of the capital upon a hollow architectural column and secures such capital in place on the column.
2. Description of the Related Art
The inventor is unaware of any patents for capitals associated with architectural columns.
Architectural columns are often made hollow. The capital, which is placed upon the column traditionally has had a neck that fits into the top of the hollow column. Screws are placed through the column and into the neck in order to secure the capital to the column.
The cross-sectional shape of the column is intended to be circular. The outer diameter of an architectural column is generally consistent; the inner diameter, however, often varies. Thus, the outer diameter of the neck of the capital, which neck also has a circular cross section, has had to be smaller than the minimum inner diameter anywhere within the portion of the column that is intended to be occupied by the neck of the capital; and the screws had had to be used to adjust the neck so the capital will be generally centered over the column.
The present invention involves a capital having a neck the maximum outer cross-sectional dimension of which is smaller than the maximum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the hollow column intended to be occupied by the neck but larger than the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the column intended to be occupied by the neck. The minimum outer cross-sectional dimension of the neck must be smaller than the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the column intended to be occupied by the neck.
The neck is oriented so that its maximum outer cross-sectional dimension is not aligned with the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the column intended to be occupied by the neck and inserted within the column. The neck is then twisted generally to align the maximum outer cross-sectional dimension of the neck with the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the column.
Frictional forces then tend to hold the capital in place on the column; and since, the maximum outer cross-sectional dimension of the neck will be generally aligned with the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the column, the capital, which is attached to the top of the neck, will tend to be centered over the column.
Alternatively, rather than having maximum outer cross-sectional dimension of the neck larger than the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the column intended to be occupied by the neck, a shim can be placed adjacent to a neck having a maximum outer cross-sectional dimension smaller than the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the column intended to be occupied by the neck. The shim would be of such a thickness that, when added to the maximum outer cross-sectional dimension of the neck, the total distance would be larger than the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the column intended to be occupied by the neck but smaller than the maximum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the column intended to be occupied by the neck.
Of course, with either option, i.e., with our without the shim, the difference between the maximum outer cross-sectional dimension of the neck and the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the portion of the column intended to be occupied by the neck must be small enough to permit the neck to be twisted to attain general alignment of the maximum outer cross-sectional dimension of the neck with the minimum inner cross-sectional dimension of the column.